The family of the man accused in Michelle Martinko’s 1979 murder released a statement over the weekend.

The family’s Manchester attorney, John Carr, could not be reached for comment Sunday.

“The family of Jerry Burns would like to thank our friends and the Manchester community for the support we have received since Jerry’s arrest," the statement said. "We would also like to extend our sympathy to the Martinko family."

Martinko, an 18-year-old Kennedy High School student, was found dead at 4 a.m. on Dec. 20, 1979, in her family's tan 1972 Buick in the parking lot of Cedar Rapids' Westdale Mall. She'd driven there after a choir banquet the evening before. Her face and chest had been repeatedly stabbed and wounds on the teen’s hands showed she'd fought her killer.

Burns was arrested and charged with first-degree murder on Wednesday, 39 years after the fatal stabbing. Police said detectives covertly obtained DNA from Burns and it matched the DNA evidence they had on file from Martinko's killing.

"The charge against Jerry comes as a complete shock to us and we are doing our best to carry on with our lives," the family's statement continued. "During this difficult time and as the justice system runs its course we ask that our privacy be respected. Thank you."

Jerry Lynn Burns(Photo: Special to the Register)

Residents of Manchester interviewed Friday said they were having trouble coming to terms with the allegations against Burns. The man they've know, who went to high school in the town of 5,000 and spent much of his adult life there, is now accused of a gruesome murder. Some said they thought of Burns as a "gentleman," who didn't have "a mean bone in his body."